


...And the Doctor

by GrumpyJenn



Category: Doctor Who (2005), The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: Crossover, Friendship, Guilt, Libraries, Light Angst, Post Darillium
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-24
Updated: 2015-01-24
Packaged: 2018-03-08 20:30:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3222455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrumpyJenn/pseuds/GrumpyJenn





	...And the Doctor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [justlook3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/justlook3/gifts), [AnagramRMX](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnagramRMX/gifts), [luladannys](https://archiveofourown.org/users/luladannys/gifts), [Kehwie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kehwie/gifts).



“I’m sorry,” said the Doctor blankly; “You say you’re a librarian?”

The Doctor didn’t really care for libraries, not anymore. Not since River.

But _this_ Library – and one could almost hear the capital letter L when they said it – this Library was far more a Museum. Or an Archive of Amazing Things.

There were artifacts in here that the Doctor hadn’t seen the likes of since… well, since Alexandria or Camelot. And they were peculiarly human artifacts, mostly, rather than things fallen from the stars or made by the Silurians or something. Swords and goblets and the like. Metal mostly, and of the mystical sort rather than the alien tech sort.

He wondered what Jack might think of them, now he’d gotten Torchwood to a reasonable sort of thing, if a bit violent for the Doctor’s taste. He rather missed Jack.

But the girl – the Librarian – was talking. Little ginger American-sounding thing, talked nearly as fast as he sometimes did. So he listened. “Librarian in training,” she was saying, “Me and Jake and Zeke; they didn’t used to do it that way, they used to throw you in to see if you could swim, but with us they take it a little slower. Not that it’s not still dangerous, but I guess after I… never mind that.” She paused for breath and the Doctor noted that she looked suddenly tired, as though she had run a long way or perhaps was feeling sad or ashamed or wistful.

Stars above, the Doctor understood _those_ feelings, all too well.

Taking out the sonic screwdriver, he scanned her up and down, while she watched him warily. Two young men – so _young_ , these three, about as young as he himself looked, face of a twelve-year-old, River had said – skidded around a corner bookshelf and took up aggressive stances. “He’s okay,” the girl said quickly, “He’s not hurting me,” and both boys relaxed, though they still looked wary.

The black-haired one said something like, “You just let us know,” in a thick Australian accent, and the other one just looked both annoyed and worried at the same time. He muttered something under his breath too low for even the Doctor to catch, but apparently the girl knew him well enough to give him a look both pleading and exasperated.

“Trust me on this, Jake, just this once. Please.” It was all she said, but the young man looked as though she had slapped him. He gave her a curt nod and visibly forced himself to relax, even as he stepped closer.

“What do you want from us?” His voice was quiet, but it held the same sort of quiet as the Doctor’s own voice did when he was particularly angry; the Oncoming Storm voice. So the Doctor pulled the sonic away from the scan and held it up, flipped the tip out for a reading.

Oh, the poor little girl.

“I’m sorry,” he said to the young woman. “I didn’t mean...”

She put a soft hand on his arm. “It’s okay. J—the boys are protective because I’m… I’m not entirely well.”

“Yes,” the Doctor said gravely. “I can see that.” He gestured with the sonic. “And your… teammates look after you.”

“We look after each other, mate,” said the Australian, and the Doctor smiled. He knew it was a sad smile, but what else could he do?

“As you should. That’s what friends – family – is for. Will you show me the Library?”

The angry man – Jake, she’d called him – turned to the girl. “Cassie, are you sure about this?”

“You’re asking me? Like you’d trust anything I have to say anyway.” She shook her head at the look on his face. “Sorry. Out of line. Hang on.” She took a deep breath and held up a hand to stop Jake as he went to take her hand. “Don’t.”

“Cassie. Don’t do this. You don’t have to prove yourself to me. Not anymore.” Jake sounded choked.

“I do. Until you _automatically_ trust, Jake; it can’t be a conscious decision on your part forever.”

The Doctor, for the second time in the past ten minutes, wondered what Jack Harkness would make of this situation. Jack certainly had a better handle on human interaction than the Doctor. Maybe he’d look the good Captain up one of these days.

His attention was dragged back to the little scene before him, as the girl’s eyes went blind and blank, and when her nose began to bleed, the Doctor looked at the two young men in alarm. The younger was looking nervous, and the elder was looking positively grim; when Cassie began to sway in place, he grasped her by the waist and turned her around. “Focus, darlin’,” he said hoarsely. “Look at me. I got you, I promise.”

The blue eyes cleared. “He’s an alien. As in not-of-Earth. But he’s harmless… to us at least. He’s a good man…” Her voice trailed off and she sagged into Jake’s arms.

His own hazel eyes filling, the Doctor watched the two young men settle their charge onto a nearby sofa. “Zeke, need some water, ‘kay?” Jake said softly, and the younger man left the room.

“If there’s anything I can do to help her…?”

“You find us some alien tech that will cure her without taking away who she is, and I’d do anything for you.”

“You care about her,” the Doctor said.

Jake nodded, but he didn’t look away from Cassie’s face, where he was dabbing at the blood that had dripped from her nose.

“There must be something in this Library that could…”

“She tried that once; she was manipulated by a… y’know what, it doesn’t matter. We used up the one thing and we can’t find anything else in here,” Jake choked out. “And she’s dying of it.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Me too.” He bent his head to kiss Cassie on the forehead. “I’m so sorry.”

She murmured in her sleep, and the Doctor resolved to find a way. Here in this Library, if need be.

Perhaps a Library could be a good thing, even now.


End file.
